NY from Space, then and now.

The BBC has this story that includes both pre- and post-attack 1-meter satellite shots of lower Manhattan. (via MetaFilter)
12:17pm 17sep01

Look at this.

I've gotten this from several of you. It's a photo page of world reactions to the Trade Center bombing, and it's genuinely moving. As a child of the Cold War, the Kremlin's flags at half mast was a particularly resonant image for me.
10:10am 17sep01

There is nothing I can say.

The events of 11 September are undeniably the most horrible for our country - and the world - in recent memory. On the Well, people have been posting that so-and-so's checked in, that this person or that person are okay, and even though I don't know them I breathe a sigh of relief.

The people at MadeByNick.com offer this photo as a show of online unity, for whatever it's worth, and I figure it can't hurt.

11:35am 12sep01

Dept. of Proactively Leveraging the New Pardigm to Dynamically Blah Blah Blah...

Giant Flounder Penis (yes) provides us with key assets for doing business in the New Economy: to wit, the Mission Statement Generator.

The scary part is that they're not all obviously jokes. Somewhere, there's an MBA hitting the "reload" button over and over...
3:34pm 10sep01

Thousands and Thousands of the Very, Very Hip

Aerial photos of Burning Man. Cool.
3:36pm 8sep01

Read This.

Jon Carroll does not lie.
3:14pm 7sep01

Mr Payne's Contribution

NoGators Senior Political Correspondent L. Payne. sends us this. Enjoy.
3:02pm 7sep01

Mystery Solved!

There's a reason why there was never a French version of MacGyver.
6:30pm 6sep01

Just be careful who makes the "re-enactment Kool-aid."

This is just plain wacked.
3:55pm 6sep01

Do you know what cookies are?

If you don't -- or even if you think you do -- check out this story in the New York Times. It's an excellent rundown of why we need them, what the privacy concerns are, and how you can protect yourself from abuses.
3:00pm 6sep01

Dept. of Navel-Gazing Redux

After I posted the prior entry, I emailed my brother to tease him about his firm being the 23rd most frequent visiting domain for us here at NoGators. In reply, he says:

I'm proud to be 23rd. And, with a renewed faith in America and solid belief in the ideals that make this nation strong, I know we can move to 22d and then maybe 21st before we know it! This, my friends , is your call to arms! Only a can-do attitude will survive the treacherous slings and arrows of internet visitation placement but we can win! Go! Fight! Win!

Okay, kids. You know who you are. Shouldn't you be writing briefs or something?
2:44pm 6sep01

Dept. of Navel-gazing

I've just reviewed the Nogators stats for August, and something weird shows up. I'm used to seeing all manner of ISP originating domains, but #12 on the hit parade last month was gov.au. Who are you?
1:03pm 6sep01

Dept. of Hyping My Friends

My pal Kelly works for PopNYC, a hip online shop in the up-and-coming (read: scary) meatpacking district in NYC. They're very cool. In particular, I'm blown away by their Aniluxe, a toy they did for the Cartoon Network. Roll your own Mojo Jojo animations with a 1940's-era animation machine!
1:23pm 5sep01

Dept. of Nutjobs, Political Division

Houston-area attorney and crank John Worldpeace (his name was Kenneth Wolter until 1988) is running for governor of Texas. Oh boy. He's also enlisted the aid of a telephone solicitation firm, so every few days I get another long burst of screed on my answering machine. He's also actively endorsing non-nutjob Houston mayoral candidate Chris Bell, who in turn is trying to get Worldpeace to stop drumming up votes for him in his phone messages. I can't imagine why.
8:39pm 4sep01

"Great movie. Loved the music. Congrats on the awards. Now pay up."

Oscar-winning documentary-maker and guitar player Ry Cooder is being shaken down for $25,000 by our lovely government on account o' him spending time and money in Cuba -- while making the Buena Vista Social Club, which of course subsequently won all sorts of awards (I'm guessing director Wim Wenders is also being fined). It seems you still need permission of the US government to spend money there. Never mind all that claptrap about bringing people together, or illustrating what a fool's errand the embargo is, of course. Wow.
2:23pm 4sep01

This is just cool.

Scientists have discovered that certain types of brittlestars heretofore believed to be blind due to a wholesale lack of eyes (go figure) are in fact all eyes. Somehow, they use the beadlike crystals that make up their external skeltons to create one big compound eye. Neat.
11:46am 4sep01

Mysterious Birthday Greetings.

One of you - at least - had a birthday this Monday last (August 27). If I'm not mistaken, you're now 32. Any Heathen or Knaves in the greater New York area might wish to seek out a certain Australian and buy him a pint, or at least a walker. Enjoy.
6:50pm 30aug01

Something else to worry about.

Someday, eruptions in the Canary Islands could create enormous tidal waves that threaten much of the Atlantic coast. This may be the first actual reason to consider the midwest as a vacation spot.

Correction: Longtime Arrant Knave Joe M., late of Iowa, writes:

I can't be more adamant here....there is absolutely no good reason to visit the midwest. I would take death by an enormous wall of water over waking up one more day in this godforsaken hell hole. Please inform the rest of the Arrant Knaves.

We stand corrected. NoGators regrets the error.
10:53pm 28aug01

Dept. of Unexpected Pleasures

Filmmaker Kevin Smith has written a pleasantly sweet comic recounting how he met and first kissed his wife. It's running in the New York Times, of all places.
2:49pm 27aug01

This Just In: Dogs and the Internet Banned!

By now, we've all gotten used to the weird fundamentalist thrashes foisted on the Afghani people by the Taliban; this time around, they've banned the Internet, which I figure means precisely squat in a country with virtually no technological infrastructure. Though I'm sure it will help with their educational trouble.

But Iran isn't Afghanistan, and moderate forces seem to be making progress there. Of course, they're still working through their issues with dogs.

At the risk of being culturally insensitive: Wow.
8:26pm 26aug01

Bankruptcy, Texas-Style

I thought we were in a bad way -- until I read about Austin-based Agillion. They raised $45 million 2-1/2 years ago -- and are currently in bankruptcy with debts exceeding $23 million. Their total sales? $146,000. They win. Now I feel much better.
3:01pm 24aug01

Dept. of Provincial Idiots, Southern Governor Division

How on earth can Alabama governor Don Siegelman not realize that comments like "If God had wanted you to wear earrings, He'd have made you a girl" make him like an uneducated backwoods cracker? Link.
2:06pm 24aug01

Lawyers, Guns, and Money IV

It's that time of year again, and someone suggested I provide a fresh link to this bit. Enjoy.
9:57am 24aug01

Dept. of Interplanetary Answering Devices

Who knew that Alderaan still had a home page?
9:55am 24aug01

Afroman Redux

The aforementioned Afroman, Mississippi hip-hop legend, has a hit on his hands with "Because I Got High." Of course, loyal Heathen knew about him several weeks ago, but the single is climbing the charts in the wake of its inclusion on the Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back soundtrack. It's a charming ditty with lyrics like

I messed up my entire life because I got high
I lost my kids and wife because I got high
now I'm sleeping on the sidewalk and I know why
because I got high, because I got high, because I got high.

Of course, the next step is a video, presumably one clearly documenting the dangers of the nefarious weed named in the title. Nevertheless, the goons at MTV are insisting on -- you guessed it -- changes to avoid explicit references to or images of (right again!) smoking pot.

This from the network that gave us Jackass?
1:59pm 23aug01

How to be a Good Media Consumer

I know you've been waiting for a way to really appreciate the world's amazing array of corporate news and media outlets. Fortunately, AlterNet has the answer. Enjoy!
12:16pm 23aug01